


Definitions of Home

by fictionfrek101



Series: Rogue Love [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Angst, F/M, Family Issues, Loss of Parent(s), Marriage Proposal, Oneshot collection, Parent-Child Relationship, Postpartum Depression, Pregnancy, Rogue One Speculation, Weddings, probably more people will show up, religious doubter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-04-02
Packaged: 2018-05-11 13:32:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5628388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fictionfrek101/pseuds/fictionfrek101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Felicity Rhiaon was the woman who stole the plans to the first Death Star. Luke Skywalker was the pilot who destroyed it. Rey Rhiaon Skywalker was the daughter born of their love. These are the stories of how it all came to pass in the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.  Based on my popular Luke Skywalker/Rogue One tumblr photosets,</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Overview

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Luke Skywalker x Rogue One Series](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/166483) by ellasouthgate. 



> This is a collection of stories based in and around the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. They mostly center on Felicity Rhiaon, a character who is my speculation on what Felicity Jones’ character will be in Rogue One. It also operates on the theory that not only is Rey the daughter of Luke Skywalker, but that her mother will also be Felicity Jones’ character in Rogue One.  
> I will also warn you that these stories are not in chronological order. For the accompanying photosets I built centered around the stories, please visit my tumblr of ellasouthgate.

 

Their relationship had been a massive surprise to everyone, yet in hindsight made perfect sense.

She was Rogue One, and he Rogue Leader.

She was the woman who stole the plans to the Death Star, and he blew it up.

 

But they were also opposites.

He was a solider, she was a spy.

He was calm and collected, she was feisty and fiery.

He was a master swordsman, she always kept a blaster at her side.

 

Their relationship could be hard at times.

He was in charge of raising a new generation of Jedi, and she barely believed in the Force.

He never pushed her, she pushed him too far.

He wanted to settle down with a family, and she wanted to always be on the move.

He spoke openly and freely about his problems, and she refused to admit them until pushed.

 

Despite it all, there were never two people who loved each other more than the Jedi Grandmaster and Rogue One.

But love does not come from nothing, and cannot possibly blossom without first taking root.

So how then did Luke Skywalker and Felicity Rhiaon come to fall in love and create the child they named Rey?

Well, that is the story you have come to hear, and it only makes sense to begin with the moment they first crossed paths.


	2. Nice to Meet You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At the tenth anniversary of the Battle of Yavin, Luke unknowingly meets his future wife.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This oneshot is based on the photoset entitled: Part Five – Nice to Meet You

10 ABY (After Battle of Yavin)

Despite being the man who blew up the Death Star, and the woman who stole its plans, Luke Skywalker and Felicity Rhiaon wouldn’t meet until a decade after their heroics. In fact, it had been at the tenth anniversary celebration of the destruction of the Death Star that they were introduced.

It was a grand event that Leia planned. There was a photo session with all the major news groups, a reenactment of Luke and Han’s medal ceremony where Leia would present more medals to those who had been neglected (Luke strongly suspected Chewie and Wedge were behind that idea), a tribute to the fallen, and then it would conclude with a giant after party.

All of the participants were gathered backstage, chatting casually as they tried to stay out of the overstressed Leia’s way. Luke could tell she was especially stressed over the fact that Ben wasn’t at the celebration, but she was the one who insisted on keeping him out of the public eye as much as possible, and thus had been left at home with a babysitter.

The meeting between Luke and Felicity had been the briefest of exchanges. Luke had been busy chatting with Wedge when Leia came whizzing by, leading a woman towards them.

“We’ll have you stand next to Luke. It’ll be a great photo op,” Leia hurriedly said to the woman. “Have you met my brother yet?”

“Uh, no,” the woman replied taking a glance at Luke – who was desperately restraining an amused smirk at Leia working herself up over nothing. The woman extended her hand to Luke, “Felicity Rhiaon.”

“Luke Skywalker,” Luke shook her hand as Leia dashed off to check for the eighth time that they had enough medals.

“Pleasure to meet you, Luke. It’s nice to finally meet the man who destroyed the Death Star.”

“The pleasure’s all mine,” Luke gave her an overly large grin that didn’t reach his eyes.

“You have no idea who I am, do you?”

“Not in the slightest,” Luke couldn’t help but laugh. “Sorry.”

“I’m Rogue One,” Felicity returned the chuckle.

“Who?”

Wedge elbowed Luke, “Leader of the team who stole the plans to the Death Star.”

“Oh,” Luke said. “Well, it’s definitely a pleasure to meet you.”

Felicity was rather attractive. Pale skin, brown hair in an elegant up do, slender figure though not very curvy, her face had sharp angles, and her brown eyes seemed to assess even the smallest of details as she too took him in.

Luke opened his mouth to say something more when he was suddenly cut off.

“PLACES PEOPLE!” Leia called out.

“See you around,” Felicity gave a smile before heading off.

“See you,” Luke watched as she walked away. Out of the corner of his eye, Luke caught Wedge’s smirk, “What?”

“You never have been good with women, Luke.”

***

Triumphant music rang through the hall as Luke stood at the head of the assembly next to Leia and Han. He had no idea how in the galaxy Leia had managed to track down the exact same outfits they had all worn at the first ceremony, but he strongly suspected replicas were involved.

Originally Luke had asked to wear his formal Jedi robes as he felt they were more appropriate, but Leia refused. The destruction of the Death Star was not a Jedi success, no matter how many times Luke insisted the Force had guided him. So there he was in the same brown pants, yellow jacket, black shirt and boots, and medal of bravery hung around his neck.

Four well-dressed figures strode confidently down the aisle: Chewbacca looking particularly well-groomed, an olive skinned, dark haired man that Luke vaguely recognized as one of his Rogue Squadron pilots on Hoth, Felicity Rhiaon with a distant sadness in her eyes, and Wedge tugging at his collar, clearly wanting out of his formal clothes.

Leia made a brief speech once the honored reached the platform. She shared a few words about the history of the Battle of Yavin and threw in a few anecdotes involving trash compactors and Han ending his conversation with security using a blaster.

Next it was Luke’s turn to speak. He gave a few words about the pilots who were lost, and the dogfights in the trench. He announced that medals of bravery would be awarded posthumously to the men and women who lost their lives, and shipped to their families. Finally, he awarded Wedge his own medal of bravery, taking great joy in being able to place it around his friend’s neck.

Han next spoke, telling the story of how Chewie had convinced him to return to the Rebels and save the day. Luke had heard it a thousand times already and felt no shame in tuning his brother-in-law out.

Luke looked at the four people being honored, focusing particularly on the two strangers. He wouldn’t exactly call the man a stranger; he had met him before on Hoth. Luke tried not to furrow his brow as he thought back to the icy planet and the pilots assigned there, trying to place the face to a name.

Then it hit Luke, the man was Diego Nalto – call sign Rogue One. Oddly enough, Diego had always rejected the designation, having even attempted to be reassigned to the position of Rogue Two. The Rebel Council told Luke and Diego in no uncertain terms that call signs were based on seniority and with Diego’s accomplishments they could not possibly rank him under the assigned Rogue Two, Zev Senesca.

When Luke had asked Diego why he was so adamant about being Rogue Two, Diego had explained that the Rogue Squadron was the name given to the team of people who stole the plans to the Death Star.

_“I cared very much for the originators of the titles, and this is how I choose to honour them,” Diego told Luke in mess hall one day. “I understand why they wish to reuse the name – especially when it’s going to be commanded by the man who destroyed the Death Star – but Rogue Two was my place on that team, no matter how hard I fought to be Rogue One. So, if I can’t be Rogue Two, then call me Second.”_

_“But what difference does it make?” Luke asked. “You’re still second in command, and you just said you wanted to be Rogue One. Why would you turn that chance down?”_

_Diego grinned, “Because after all the hell Rhiaon got me through – through Death Stars, and Imperials, and Tarkin, and Jakku – there will never be another person who deserves the title of Rogue One.”_

As Luke turned his eyes to Rogue One herself, Luke felt admiration and curiosity for Felicity Rhiaon’s story. He only knew bits and pieces of the fateful Operation Citadel – named for an almost impossible undercover operation the Jedi had carried out during the Clone Wars, while assisted by a young Tarkin, making the name far too perfect not to use. Maybe if he had the time, Luke would ask Felicity about it.

“But the Battle would have been nothing without the actions of the first Rogue Squadron,” Leia continued her address, drawing Luke’s attention back to the ceremony. “Four men and one woman were sent on the daring mission to steal the plans to the Death Star so we may have found and exploited its weaknesses. This mission required much sacrifice not only on a level of mortality, but for some a far more personal level. The sacrifice of pride, of leadership, of values, and in one tragic case, of one’s own family.”

Luke couldn’t help but notice Felicity quickly lowered her eyes.

“Five brave Rebel soldiers departed our base,” Leia carried on, “only two returned. Two who we honour here today not only for Operation Citadel, but their continued work with the Alliance in our time of war. Felicity Rhiaon, Rogue One, leader of the first Rogue Squadron became one of our top recruiters. Diego Nalto, Rogue Two, second in command and team pilot, used those skills in many of our aerial battles throughout the war. Therefore, we honour you both today with these medals of bravery.”

Applause thundered through the room as Leia placed the medals around Felicity and Diego’s necks. Then, with a nod from Leia, Felicity climbed the platform and faced the audience.

“I thank the Rebel Alliance for this award,” Felicity began. “It is something I do not feel I deserve, yet am honoured to accept. If you will grant me a few moments, Senator Organa has allowed me a few words.” The audience quieted, interested to hear what Felicity might say. “I am not much of a speechmaker, so I will keep it short,” Felicity promised. “I wish to take a moment to speak of the men whose lives I lost on my mission. When I was assigned to be the leader of this team, I was not some great General or deep cover spy. I was a low level recruiter who happened to have some ties to Bail Organa, and an Imperial officer stationed on the Death Star. I was not the best leader the Alliance had to offer; I was merely the most convenient, a fact Diego never let me forget.”

Diego shared a grin with Felicity, and she just shook her head.

“The other men on my team _were_ the best,” Felicity went on. “And though we struggled to get along at first, each man became family to me. Diego Nalto – Rogue Two – one of our best pilots and strategists. He was the annoying big brother who never got off his high horse, but fought with everything he had to protect me, his annoying little sister who had no idea what she was doing, and got the power he wanted. Though all of my men played an important part in the mission, it’s thanks to Diego I’m standing here today.”

The audience gave Diego a minute of polite applause.

“But we cannot forget the men who lost their lives on the mission,” Felicity’s voice became solemn. “Riz Drayson – Rogue Five – the Alliance’s best technician had been my friend since the day I joined the Alliance. He truly was my brother, and I know he died happily. Using the last of his energy, as he suffered from his mortal wound, he stole the Death Star schematic out of the Imperial computer system. With his dying breath he begged me to keep it safe.”

Luke applauded with the audience once more. He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt over the fact that he had never truly wondered about the spies who had stolen the Death Star plans. Luke wondered exactly what wound had ended Drayson’s life.

“Gunner – also known as Wen Arroyo – was a notable figure in the Alliance,” Felicity’s speech went on. “He was Rogue Four: a man made of muscle, firepower, and a dangerous mind to combine the two. An uncle to me, Gunner taught me how to fight, lessons I still use to this day. He almost made it out that day, but he chose to stay behind and sacrifice himself so that Diego and I had a chance to escape. He went down the way we all knew he would: fighting legions of Stormtroopers singlehandedly.”

Luke noted that the applause for Gunner was the most enthusiastic yet. It was surprising, Gunner’s legacy had well lived on in the Alliance. Luke had even heard of the man several times during the war. No one had ever brought up the fact that he had died for the Death Star plans.

In fact, now that he thought about it, Luke realised that no one had ever really discussed Operation Citadel around him. Perhaps since the Alliance hailed Luke as the sole hero of the Death Star’s destruction, they felt it too awkward to tell him “by the way, there were more people, you know.”

“But the person I miss the most is Rogue Three – Ji-Dan Hayato,” Felicity said. The distant sadness returned to her eyes. “He was a mentor and grandfather to me. Operation Citadel happened during a time when the Force was dead to the world. There has no black or white, only grey. But in Ji-Dan, the Force lived on. I’ve always doubted the extent of the Force’s power, but to Ji-Dan, it was everything. He believed fiercely that someday the Jedi would return, and Light would win. I stand here, ten years, wishing I could see the look on his face as I stand next to the new Jedi Grandmaster, Luke Skywalker himself. Ji-Dan would be proud to know that not only did the theft of the plans bring destruction to the horrific machine, but it also brought about the return of the Jedi. And that is what those men, what all Rebel martyrs, died, and what we all fought for: peace, freedom, and the return of the Light. And I know, deep in my heart, that Gunner, Riz, and Ji-Dan are all looking down on us with pride.”

As the audience broke into applause, Felicity glanced over at Luke, who was clapped extra hard for her.

The two couldn’t help but share a smile.

***

“Let’s get one of Skywalker and Rhiaon together!”

Luke blinked, trying to clear the bright flashes of the cameras from his eyes as the reporters crowded around the photoshoot. No doubt the pictures would be on every screen the next day.

People shuffled awkwardly as Luke suddenly found Felicity Rhiaon pushed next to him.

“Hello, again,” Felicity smiled at him.

“Hello,” Luke grinned.

“Master Skywalker, put your arm around her!” someone ordered.

Luke looked at Felicity, “May I?”

“Go ahead.”

Though he didn’t think much of it at the time, Luke found there was something to how perfectly his arm fit wrapped around her waist. Felicity placed her hand on his shoulder and they silently paused for the cameras for a few minutes.

“I bet this will be the star photo tomorrow,” Felicity muttered, trying not to mess up the shots. “Rogue One and Rogue Leader. The woman who stole the plans to the Death Star, and the man who blew it up.”

“We do make a sensible match,” Luke nodded. “I liked your speech during the ceremony.”

“I’m just glad I was allowed to make it. Very few people ever talk about my team, and we suffered very heavy losses.”

“Well, thank you. Without you stealing the plans in the first place, none of this would have been possible.”

“Thank you,” Felicity said. “It’s nice to see someone appreciate my team’s accomplishments for once.”

Luke grinned, “Any time.”

As they looked back at the cameras, Felicity found she rather liked Luke’s smile.

***

Felicity found herself at Luke’s side once more during the tribute to the fallen. A large pyre had been built and lit in memory of those who had lost their lives. Leia, Felicity, and Luke stood at the head of the assembly and took turns saying the names of the fallen. Felicity listed the members of her team, Luke the pilots, and Leia the rest. Leia even took a few moments to mention Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Owen and Beru Lars, who merited recognition for their part in refusing to expose Luke, Obi-Wan, and the droids.

As the flames burned bright, Felicity listened to the quaver in Luke’s voice as he listed his set of names. Felicity was quite impressed. Luke hadn’t known any of the men who spoke of, yet his voice was so filled with heartbreak, she struggled not to tear up.

Perhaps it was from his connection to the so called Force, but Felicity had her doubts but the extent of the power of the Force.

“Biggs Darklighter,” Luke’s voice broke on the last name. “Biggs was my best friend, and we had just been reunited. I was going to tell him all about the adventures I had had, but…”

Luke couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

Felicity looked up at him. Luke was staring into the flames, tears shining in his eyes. As if it was the most natural thing in the world, Felicity gently touched his arm. Luke visibly relaxed at the gesture of comfort.

“Thank you,” Luke whispered.

Felicity smiled, “Any time.”

As they looked back at the pyre, Luke found he rather liked Felicity’s smile.

***

They didn’t spend much more time with each other that day. At the after party they bumped into each other and briefly exchanged a few words. Luke had found Felicity made pleasant enough conversation.

“You were only 21, and they put you in charge of the team?” Luke repeated in disbelief.

“I’d say they made the right choice,” Felicity grinned. “Besides you were only, what 18?”

“19,” Luke instantly corrected.

“Oh, well that makes a huge difference, doesn’t it?”

Luke rolled his eyes, “So, why’d they pick you?”

Felicity bit her lip, “My… father was stationed on the Death Star. We had gone our separate ways, but he had offered me a job if I ever came back to the Empire. I was best shot to get us in. The Leaders of the Rebellion weren’t exactly enthused about putting me in charge, but Bail Organa was insistent. I’m sorry I couldn’t save him in the end. Organa was a good man.”

“What about your father? Did I…”

“Blow him up?” Felicity rose an eyebrow when Luke awkwardly let the sentence hang. “Yes, but… it was the right thing. Our reconciliation didn’t exactly go as planned. My father was a… difficult man, and far too loyal to the Empire.”

Luke laughed, “Now there’s a sentence I can relate to.”

“Luke,” Leia came rushing up to the pair. “Luke, there’s someone I want to introduce you to.”

“Of course,” Luke nodded. “It was nice meeting you, Felicity.”

“Nice to meet you too, Luke.”

Felicity and Luke shared a smile as Leia threw her arms around Luke’s neck and led him away. Felicity found that she liked Luke Skywalker. He was kind, charming, and definitely handsome, but she didn’t really think much more of it. After all, it was Luke Skywalker, and she was a nobody. What were the chances they’d ever meet again?

She never dreamed that in three years’ time, she would marry that man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone has any prompts or suggestions, I am more than open to them. Just a warning though, when it comes to the major things (proposal, wedding, pregnancy milestones) I do have ideas already. Don't let that discourage you though, a lot of factors go into those things that can be written about.
> 
> And yes, if you noticed it, I did mention Jakku. Yes, there is a connection there. No, I'm not going to tell just yet how it's connected.


	3. Rebels Reunited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke encounters Felicity again, Leia creates the Resistance, and Poe flirts at a funeral.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, if you don’t know, I am writing this story concurrently with a story called The Long Way Home. Basically the plot is what if Luke was in The Force Awakens? The Long Way Home directly continues the story of Definitions of Home and thus some of these chapters will have small flash-forwards to the events of that story.  
> Starting with this chapter, I intend to operate on a 3 to 1 chapter ratio between Definitions and Long Way. Before I write another chapter of Long Way, I will write three chapters of Definitions. I highly recommend reading the two stories in this order as a lot of chapters of Definitions scarily line up with the events of Long Way (I decided on this schedule after already planning out all 100 of the stories of Definitions.) So if you haven’t done so yet, please go read the first two chapters of Long Way and watch how these two stories play off each other.

Definitions of Home

Part Three

Rebels Reunited

* * *

10 ABY 

It took a tragedy to bring them back together; the death of a mutual friend.

The First Order had been a threat growing in the shadows for many years. Using her power as the Senator of Coruscant, Leia had desperately tried to get the Republic to take action. Unfortunately, she only found herself screaming into a void. They would wave off her concerns about the kidnapping of children as a police matter, and say they would consider asking the Jedi for additional help if they found any leads. But every time Leia found and made them aware of a lead, they would tell her to stop bothering them and occasionally threatened to arrest her for interfering in a criminal investigation.

No one wanted another war, so it was easier to dismiss Leia as an alarmist than admit there was a problem. Child after child was taken and Leia was powerless to do anything about it.   

And then the death of Shara Bey changed everything.

The First Order’s attack on the colony of Yavin IV was a clear political move. Yavin IV was the site of the Rebellion’s first great victory. To strike the retired Rebels would prove to the Galaxy how great a threat the First Order was.

The objective was the same as always: steal children under the age of five to be trained as the First Order’s future army. Shara’s son, Poe, was eight and therefore not at risk, but that didn’t mean Shara was willing to stand down and let other children be taken.

Shara’s murder was not the first committed in one of the First Order’s attacks, but what made it different was that it was the first caught on Holo. No one knew who released the Holo of Shara’s death to the public, and her widower, Kes Dameron was furious when it was. A number of cease and desist orders were sent to every media outlet, but it was too late: the public had seen it all.

They had all seen how many of the citizens of Yavin IV had tried to fight off the First Order. They had all seen when the Stormtrooper in charge – a woman referred to as PH-5177 or “Phasma” – announced what would later become the historical declaration that “any resistance will be met with proper force.” They had all seen when Shara boldly announced that she would continue to resist. And they had all seen when every present member of the First Order opened fire on Shara.

The public was outraged, and every Senator was flooded with complaints about the First Order. An emergency session of the Senate was called so they could figure out how to deal with the issue, but first they allowed for Shara’s funeral to happen so that she may have been peacefully laid to rest.

Since Shara’s death had become so public, in order to maintain privacy for his family, Kes was forced to limit permitted attendants to a list.

Two of the names on that list?

Luke Skywalker and Felicity Rhiaon.

“Kes,” Luke greeted after the service. “I am so sorry for your loss. Shara was a great woman.”

“Thank you for your sympathies, Master Skywalker,” Kes nodded respectfully, with an arm around Poe’s shoulder. “Poe, what do we say?”

“Thank you, Master Skywalker,” Poe’s head was hung and he stared at the floor with puffy red eyes. The boy was barely keeping it together.

Luke gently smiled; he remembered how hard it had been to keep it together himself when he lost his aunt and uncle (though no one would have blamed him if he had broken down after discovering their smoldering skeletons). At least Poe had had the luxury of not personally witnessing his mother’s murder.

A thought suddenly occurred to Luke. He looked to Kes inquisitively, and when their eyes met, Luke gave a short glance to Poe.

Kes nodded in understanding and then leaned in to whisper to Luke, “Poe hasn’t seen the footage, but I did tell him what happened.”

“Good,” Luke replied. “It’s not right to keep secrets like that, but there’s no need to traumatize him.”

“What’s going to happen to the First Order?” Poe suddenly asked.

The men looked surprised at the question.

“We’re not sure yet,” Luke answered. “The Senate is going to hold a meeting to come up with an answer.”

“But they’re going to fight back, right?” Poe pushed.

“I sure hope so,” Kes muttered.

“When I grow up, I’m going to be a pilot like Mom, and stop things like this from happening,” Poe passionately announced. “I’m going to be the best pilot there ever was!”

“Quite bold to make such a statement to Luke Skywalker himself,” a feminine voice interrupted.

Luke turned to see a vaguely familiar looking woman approaching the group.

“Felicity,” Kes greeted.

“Kes,” Felicity Rhiaon gave him a brief hug. “I am so sorry about Shara. She was a good friend.”

“Thank you.” Kes looked down at Poe, “Have you met our son?”

“Not yet.” Felicity knelt down and held out her hand for Poe to shake, “Poe? I’m Felicity Rhiaon. I was friends with your mother in the Rebellion.”

“Nice to meet you,” Poe shook her hand, looking mildly surprised. “So, you’re not going to hug me?”

“We’re strangers. Why would I hug you?” Felicity posed kindly.

Poe shrugged, “I don’t know. Almost everyone today has. Most without even telling me who they were. One woman even tried to kiss me on the lips. I think she was a friend of my grandmother’s, but she never even gave me her name.”

Felicity laughed, “Don’t worry, Poe. I’ve been the mourner of attention at enough funerals to know how to deal with people. Don’t hug anyone unless they initiate it, and introduce yourself as well as your connection to the person being mourned.”

“Yeah,” Poe nodded. “It’s weird, the people I don’t know seem to never introduce themselves, and the people I do know, still introduce themselves. And no one’s even asked me if I want a hug. Although…”

Poe paused to take a look at Felicity.

“You can hug me anytime you want,” Poe slyly said.

The adults burst out laughing.

“Oh, Kes, this one’s going to be a charmer,” Felicity tousled Poe’s hair as she rose to her feet. “It looks like Skywalker isn’t the only one who needs to look out in a few years.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Luke grinned. “I can’t let my title of best pilot slip away so easily. It’s Miss Rhiaon, right?”

“Felicity. Miss Rhiaon. Rogue One. Whatever you prefer, Skywalker,” Felicity shook Luke’s hand. “Or is it, Luke?”

Luke grinned, “Whatever you prefer, Rhiaon.”

“Kes!”

The group looked up to see Kes’ father-in-law, Parek Bey, approaching.

“Sorry for interrupting,” Parek said, “but Kes, we need to settle things with the funeral director.”

“Of course,” Kes nodded. “Luke, Felicity, thank you for joining us. Come on, Poe.”

Luke and Felicity bid the family goodbye as Parek and Kes led Poe away.

“Cute kid,” Felicity said.

“He is a character,” Luke laughed. “So, you knew Shara?”

“She was the one who retrieved Diego and I after we stole the plans to the Death Star. We became friends, and she piloted me to a lot of my recruitment missions.”

“You needed a pilot?”

Felicity looked away awkwardly, “I… Can’t fly ships. At least not well.”

Luke frowned, “I thought it was a requirement of all Rebels.”

“It’s a long and rather personal story, but Bail Organa made an exception when he recruited me. Besides, I do know the bare minimum, just don’t ask me to land a ship unless you want flames and extensive property damage.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“So, you knew Shara too? Or are you here because you’re well… Luke freaking Skywalker and can pretty much freely attend any Rebellion affiliated event you want?”

Luke chuckled, “As true as that may be, I actually did know Shara. In fact, her last mission with the Rebellion was helping me track down a Force Sensitive tree.”

Felicity raised a brow, “A Force Sensitive tree? You’re joking right?”

“Why would I joke about that?”

“Come on!” Felicity laughed. “It’s hard enough to believe in the Force on its own, but now you’re asking me to believe there are trees that are ‘one with the Force?’”

Luke then recalled Felicity’s speech at the Celebration of the Battle of Yavin, “You don’t believe in the Force?”

“I believe it to an extent,” Felicity admitted. “I believe you personally can sense people’s emotions and move things with your mind, but the whole destiny aspect is where you lose me. There’s no mystical force that decides my fate, and if there is – after everything its taken from me – I want nothing to do with it.”

Luke sensed the pain behind her words, but as she was still barely more than a stranger to him, he felt it inappropriate to push any further.

“I respect your opinion,” Luke replied. “You’re not the first person to say that to me, and you certainly won’t be the last. In fact, even my brother-in-law, Han, used to believe that.”

“Speaking of your family, do you have any idea what Leia’s going to say at the Senate meeting? She won’t answer my questions, and I want my office to be prepared.”

“You’re a Senator?”

“Senate Emissary,” Felicity corrected. “Hence why I’m not exactly in the loop to Leia’s plans.”

A Senate Emissary was basically a fancy way of saying Republic Recruiter. Felicity’s job was to act as a messenger and representative of the Republic to other planets that were not members. She would try to convince them to join and mediated the negotiations between the Senate and potential member taking a neutral stance on the Senate and working in the favor of the potential member.

“A lot of planets have been contacting us because of this incident,” Felicity told Luke. “They want to be protected from the First Order.”

“That’s good.”

“It is, but I just wish that they had come to us for different reasons,” Felicity sighed. “More for, you know, actually believing in the good of the New Republic?”

Luke smiled, “And I wish most of my students didn’t come to me because they want to play with lightsabers. If only the universe was perfect.” 

The pair laughed together only to be stopped short when they noticed the dirty looks they were getting.

“Sorry,” Felicity playfully winced as she and Luke withheld smiles and sent apologetic looks to the people around them. “We probably shouldn’t laugh at a funeral.”

“I’m sure Shara wouldn’t have minded.” Luke’s face suddenly grew serious, “Felicity? I don’t mean to pry but… did you see the Holo?”

Felicity looked guilty, “The first part. I shut it off when the Troopers readied to fire. What about you?”

“I chose not to view it,” Luke replied. “Out of respect.”

“It’s not that I didn’t want to respect her,” Felicity insisted. “I just… I sort of have a thing about last words. I always hope that a person is allowed to make their peace if their life is taken unfairly. I wanted to see if she got that dignity.”

“And did she?”

Felicity grinned, “She did. Rather good final words too.”

“What were they?”

“The troops told her ‘any resistance will be met with proper force’ and she told them ‘any force will be met with proper resistance.’ Then she took out about five troopers before they overwhelmed her. I… didn’t watch anymore after that.”

“Any force will be met with proper resistance,” Luke smiled, gently shaking his head. “Pretty good final words. But to answer your earlier question, I don’t know what Leia is planning on doing. Truth be told, I’m not sure that even Leia knows what she’ll do.”

“Well, she’s pretty good at winging that sort of thing,” Felicity said with a shrug.

Luke looked a little confused, “Are you… close to Leia? You keep calling her casually by her name. I know you transmitted the Death Star plans to her, but I don’t remember Leia ever talking about you.”

Felicity smirked, “Well, that’s a wonderful thing to hear that she doesn’t ever discuss our friendship. No, we’re not close, but we used to be before the First Death Star. Bail Organa hired me to be what he called her personal assistant when she first started working in politics at thirteen. Though, to be honest I wasn’t so much a personal assistant. Senator Bail Organa described the position as something like the Handmaiden of a Queen of Naboo. Leia was really obsessed with this one politician at the time – someone called Amidala – and Bail thought it might be handy to have someone roughly her age around.”

“So what exactly was your job then?”

“I like to describe it as one third bodyguard, one third babysitter, and one third salaried friend. Of course, I found out years later that Bail hired me specifically because he knew my father was a technician on the Death Star and was using me as a way to keep on eye him. But bygones.”

Luke grinned at Felicity and couldn’t help but wonder why Leia had never mentioned Felicity to him. He understood that people drifted apart and got too busy to socialize, but there was something about the beautiful, charming woman before him that made Luke resent Leia not introducing them sooner. Felicity seemed like she could be a nice friend to have around.

“Oh,” Felicity’s eyes caught something over Luke’s shoulder. “Looks like my ride is waving me down. I think I have to go.”

“Really?” Luke looked back to see Diego Nalto waving to Felicity. “That’s too bad. It was nice talking to you.”

“Likewise,” Felicity gave that smile Luke remembered liking. “Maybe we could go for a drink sometime.”

“That’d be nice.”

Felicity’s smile faltered as she looked back at Diego, and she rolled her eyes.

“Alright, I’m coming!” Felicity called across the room, completely forgetting she was in the middle of a wake. She turned back to Luke, “Can you tell Leia to contact me? It’d be nice to catch up. And if you guys need anything to deal with this First Order situation, she has my number. I’d love to help.”

“I’ll be sure to let her know.”

“Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Luke smiled, remembering the phrase they had exchanged at the celebration they had met at.

“Likewise,” Felicity grinned, clearly recalling the memory. “Well, since I’m so fond of last words, let mine be this: it’s always a pleasure to bump into you, Luke. Even if the circumstances aren’t the best.”

“I find the same joy in meeting you,” Luke grinned. She gestured behind Felicity toward the exasperated Diego, “Now, I think you better go before Nalto has an aneurysm.”

“I told him to put more money in the parking meter,” Felicity laughed as she walked away.

Luke couldn’t help but watch as she left. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but there was something about that strange, beautiful girl with the affinity for final words.

Years later, Luke would realize that it was the same feeling he got the first time he met Han and Leia: the feeling of meeting someone who was destined to forever play a major part in your life. But unlike meeting his best friend or long lost twin sister, the feeling was more intense. Though it would take Luke some time to figure it out, he had finally met the woman who would be his wife, the mother of his child, and his partner.

He had met his soulmate.

* * *

Luke found himself thinking again of Felicity as he watched from the sidelines as Leia addressed the Senate. He and Han watched in boredom as Ben sat in his father’s lap and struggled to stay awake. None of the men in the family ever had quite the passion for politics Leia did.

Luke had relied Felicity’s message to Leia, and it had been met with an offhanded remark by Leia to her assistant to find some free day for the women to have lunch. Other than that, Felicity Rhiaon had not factored at all into Luke Skywalker’s life.

Instead he had been busy helping Leia prepare for her Senate meeting where she would make one of the biggest announcements of her career. It was an announcement that had been inspired by one simple sentence. A sentence that had been originally relayed to him by Felicity Rhiaon.

“Any force will be met with proper resistance. These are the words Shara Bey died for,” Leia declared to the Senate. “And that is what we must fight for. I know that none of us wish for another war, but that is exactly what we will get if we continue to do nothing. We must not be passive. We must be like Shara Bey and resist this force that threatens our safety. But I will not allow history to declare that we opened war on this First Order: we must stay on the defense. Therefore, I propose we set up a taskforce. A Resistance if you will. I have leads on the whereabouts of this First Order, and I can secure resources to lead this taskforce. I require nothing of the Republic other than permission for this Resistance to operate.”

“Permission for what? A group of vigilantes to take the law into their own hands and lead us headfirst into a war?” Senator Kush of Ryloth sneered.

“The objectives of this Resistance is not to open war,” Leia replied coolly. “They are to set up a registry of all kidnapping victims, recover the stolen children in low key undercover operations, and come to the defense of any place the First Order raids. My brother, Jedi Grandmaster Luke Skywalker has consented for the trained adult members of the Jedi Order to assist us so the Republic does not have to sacrifice military resources for our operations. All additional personnel and materials will come through volunteers and donations. You have been provided with a list of over one hundred signatures, promising to offer their various services should this taskforce to permitted to exist. Many of those offering military services, you will note, are war heroes of the Rebel Alliance, and highly trained in combat.”

There was a buzz of conversations as the list popped up on the screens of each Senator’s pod. The New Republic Senate Chamber had been modelled after that of the Old Republic. This meant that Leia’s pod floating in the center of the room forced her to watch as everyone flicked through the names on their screens and scrutinize her work.

“Senators,” Leia continued. “I ask you to take a moment. Many of us have children of our own. Many of us have nieces, and nephews, and friends with children. We all know of a young child in our life. Senators, think of how you would feel for that child to be stolen from your life. To be brainwashed under the propaganda of this First Order, and made into soldiers for a corrupt ideology that we have fought so hard to bring an end to. Imagine how it would feel to know you would lose your life trying to save that child, and no one would lift a finger to bring them home. This Resistance is not about reigniting the war of our past, but preventing the war of our future. You must vote in favor of this taskforce for our freedom, our protection, and above all, our children.”

* * *

“Congratulations, General Organa,” Han winked at Leia as the family walked down the hallways of the Senate building after the meeting. “You are now the military head of your very own Resistance.”

“Only by five votes,” Leia shook her head. “I can’t believe so many people still don’t want to do a thing about this.”

“They’re afraid of it, Leia,” Luke replied. “Give them some time to warm to it. They’ll come to see the good this will do.”

“Mom, are you really a General?” Ben asked. “Like an actual military commander?”

“You bet so, Kid,” Han ruffled his son’s hair. “General Organa. Though I would have preferred them calling you General Organa Solo.”

“And I’d prefer you call yourself Han Organa Solo, but that’s not happening anytime soon,” Leia smirked.

“I think they wanted to differentiate between you and Han,” Luke pointed out. “There’s already a General Solo, a General Organa Solo might have confused people.”

“Tell that to anyone named General Antilles,” Leia laughed.

“Wow,” Ben said in wonderment, “my mom is a General. That means almost everyone in my family is a commanding officer. General Solo, General Organa, General Skywalker-”

“Actually Luke only ever made Commander,” Han elbowed Luke playfully. “Decided he needed to dedicate more time to magic tricks.”

“For the last time, Han,” Luke rolled his eyes. “Using the Force isn’t a magic trick.”

“Oh, I know. I just like how much it bugs you when I call it one.”

Luke groaned and looked over at Leia, “Why do we keep Han around, again?”

“I don’t know,” Leia smiled and wrapped an arm around Han’s waist. “I think he’s kind of cute.”

“I am that,” Han kissed Leia.

“Ugh!” Ben groaned. “Can you not? And I wasn’t talking about Uncle Luke. Grandfather Anakin was a General in the Clone Wars.”

An awkward silence hung in the air as the adults looked at each other, hoping someone else would speak.

“Uh… yes,” Leia cleared her throat and slowly withdrew her arm from around Han. “Yes, he was. But you know who else was? My real father, Bail Organa, and the man that you were named after, Ben Kenobi.”

Ben rolled his eyes, “Why do you always change the subject to them when I want to talk about Grandfather?”

“Because Grandfather was a sociopath who murdered children?” Han muttered earning a swat from Leia.

“We just want to make sure you understand that Grandfather wasn’t the best person for you to look up to,” Luke explained, leaving Han and Leia to their antics. “Now Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars may not have been the best man, but I don’t think there’s a lot of harm in you wanting to talk about him _at that specific time_. Just remember, Ben, just because he redeemed himself and saved my life doesn’t mean we can approve of everything he did. Do you understand?”

Ben reluctantly nodded, “I understand.”

“Good,” Luke gave Ben a pat on the shoulder. “Now how about when we get home we can practice your lightsaber stances and I tell you a few stories about Grandfather?”

“Deal!” Ben grinned.

Luke smiled and looked over at Leia.

“Thank you,” Leia whispered.

Without a thought he replied, “Anytime.”

That one word set the image of a certain hazel eyed brunette into Luke’s thoughts.

He had a funny feeling that he was going to see her again very soon.

* * *

“Thanks,” Luke smiled at his sister as she handed him the stack of dishes while he and Ben set the table for dinner. He was halfway to the table when he noticed that he was holding five plates, “Uh, Leia? I think you grabbed one too many.”

“Oh, didn’t I tell you?” Leia said as she pulled a dish from the oven. “We’re having a guest.”

Luke and Ben shared an apprehensive look and Artoo let out a beep from the corner. “Guest” usually meant foreign dignitary leading to an awkward dinner involving a lot of political talk and Han causing some sort of incident when his best behaviour turned cynical. Thankfully, Han was out at the hanger that hosted the _Falcon_ doing some last minute repairs before dinner (which the family was always grateful to allow him to do because it meant he got clean up duty after dinner.) If Han had been in the room for Leia’s announcement it would have been nothing but complaining and attempted bartering until the guest arrived.

“Knock it off,” Leia shot the boys a look as she checked over Threepio’s work on dessert. “There’s no need for looking like you dread some impending doom. It’s a friendly visit, not a political meeting.”

Luke nudged Ben to prompt him to resume setting the table, “Who did you invite?”

As if on cue the apartment door buzzed.

Leia wiped her hands on a dish table, and tapped Threepio’s back to signal she was passing him. She crossed to the door and opened it with a grin to reveal a brunette woman clutching a bottle of wine.

“Fliss,” Leia greeted her friend with a hug. “It’s been far too long.”

“It’s good to see you too, Leia.” Felicity held up the bottle she was clutching, “I brought wine. It’s Alderiaan and a pretty good vintage… I think.” 

“Thank you.” Leia took the bottle and peered at the label. “Wait a minute. Did my father and I give this to you for your twenty-first birthday?”

“Maybe,” Felicity smirked. “Sorry, I’m not a wine drinker. But don’t worry, I looked into it, a ten-year-old bottle of wine from that vineyard isn’t poisonous. Doesn’t age that well, but it won’t kill you.”

“Well, I can always give it to Lando,” Leia shrugged, urging Felicity into the apartment. “He’ll drink anything. Boys, this is Felicity Rhiaon. Fliss, this is my son, Ben and you know my brother, Luke?”

“We’ve run into each other a few times,” Felicity grinned, shaking Luke’s hand. “Luke, it’s always good to see you.”

“Likewise,” Luke replied looking over Felicity. She was wearing a simple black dress and heels, and for the first time, Luke saw what her hair looked like down. Her straight brown hair fell a little past her shoulders and appeared to be very soft. As nice as her hair looked up, Luke definitely favored it down. “You look great this evening.”

“Thank you,” Felicity replied.

“Anytime,” Luke gave her a quick wink.

Felicity grinned at him, “So are you all ready for tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?” Luke frowned.

“Felicity’s one of the volunteers for the first Resistance mission,” Leia explained as she and Ben began to carry the dishes to the table. Threepio had taken Felicity’s coat to the closet while Artoo had wheeled himself over to plug into a charge port. “As capable as you and Han are, I thought the two of you could use a little backup.”

“Oh right, the mission,” Luke remembered.

Leia had already secured a lead on one of the facilities where the kidnapped children were, and Han was taking the _Falcon_ there first thing in the morning. Leia wanted to prove to the Senate as quickly as possible how effective her taskforce would be.  

“Yeah, I meant to ask you,” Felicity said, “I know that people have promised equipment, but considering we haven’t been approved for even twenty-four hours yet, do I have to bring anything?”

“Just proper clothes and maybe some extra weapons,” Leia took her usual seat leaving a spot on each side of her for Han and Luke. “I’ve got everything else handled. Han’s just checking over the Falcon as we speak. Maybe if he would hurry up, we could finally have dinner”

“Here,” Luke pulled out the chair of his usual spot. “Have my seat.”

“Thanks,” Felicity smiled as Luke pushed her in and took the seat next to her. “Been a while since a man pushed in my chair for me. So how many weapons would you recommend? I haven’t been on a military mission for a while. I mean that’s not to say I haven’t gotten in trouble every once in a while, but I’m sort of rusty on the planning area.”

“Well, I usually take maybe two blasters and my lightsaber,” Luke used the Force to put back down the bread roll Ben was floating towards him as they waited for Han to join them. “It all depends on how you use your weapons I suppose.”

“Gunner taught me the best thing in this case would be drop and fire. No use in fiddling with your gas cartridge or power cell when you could just pull out another weapon. He usually said ten would do the trick… though I don’t actually own ten blasters.”

“How many do you have?”

“Uh…” Felicity thought hard. “Leia this is a governmental operation, correct?”

“Correct,” Leia nodded.

“Ok, I can probably use my work blaster in that case, but better check with my boss,” Felicity thought aloud. “Let’s see, personal, work issue, the one in my bedside drawer…”

Felicity caught Luke’s look.

“I’m a single female who lives alone on Coruscant,” Felicity hastily explained. “Better safe than sorry. So, that’s three, though I could probably borrow two from my coworkers who are here on Hosnian Prime right now. The rest are on Coruscant or some mission. I guess I could scrounge up maybe five.”

“You could borrow the four I own if you wanted to drop and fire,” Luke offered. “Though please don’t actually drop them.”

“You own four? And you looked at me funny for keeping one in my bedside drawer,” Felicity teased. “Wait, if I take all of your blasters, won’t that leave you weaponless?”

“I’ll have my lightsaber to protect myself.”

Felicity raised an eyebrow, “In other words, you’re dead.”

“You might want to ask everyone on Jabba’s sail barge how ineffective I am with a lightsaber.”

“You do know I have no idea who Jabba is or what happened on his sail barge? Do you get completely overtaken? Or did you get lucky with your laser sword and kill everyone on board?”

Luke narrowed his eyes slightly unsure if she was mocking him or just teasing him, “It’s not a laser sword, it’s a lightsaber. An elegant weapon from a more civilized age.”

Something in Felicity’s face changed. If Luke struggled to tell if there was humor behind her words before, he could tell they were now gone completely.

“There’s nothing civilized about a lightsaber,” Felicity muttered looking down.

Luke could feel the difference in the Force. The shields in the back of Felicity’s mind had shot up, and the aura around her had darkened. Something about lightsabers had set off her defenses.   

They sat for a minute in silence, Felicity staring at her plate to avoid eye contact with everyone. The tension in the room was so thick that nobody noticed when Han walked through the door.

Felicity finally spoke, “If you’re still offering those blasters, Skywalker, I’ll take them. You can enjoy your little glow stick of death all you want, but to me there’s nothing better than a good blaster at my side.”

“A good blaster at your side?” Han’s eyebrows lifted at the girl as he recalled once saying something similar. “Sweetheart, I have no idea who you are, or what you’re doing in my house, but I think I like you.”

“Thanks,” Felicity dryly said.

“Anytime,” Luke found himself muttering.

“Finally! We can eat!” Ben exclaimed as Han took the seat next to him. With a challenging smirk, Ben made eye contact with Luke and deliberately used the Force to call the bread roll back to his plate.

Luke shook his head.

“Since we’re on the topic,” Han said as everyone began piling food on their plates. “Who are you and what are you doing in my house?”

“Han, this is Felicity Rhiaon,” Leia introduced. “She’s an old friend of mine who will be joining you on your trip tomorrow. We’ve been meaning to catch up for a while so I invited her to dinner.”

“Oh, good,” Han replied. “I thought she was another one of Luke’s girlfriends.”

Luke choked on his glass of water.

“Han!” Leia swatted his arm.

“What? He goes through them so quickly, I can’t keep track sometimes.”

“I don’t go through girlfriends quickly!” Luke objected.

“Luke, we’ve had cans of soup in our cupboard longer than some of your relationships.”

Felicity snickered, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. She cleared her throat and put on her best false innocence look as she caught Luke’s scowling glare.

“Yep, definitely like her. Good sense of humour,” Han raised his glass at Felicity. “And I’m definitely stealing that glow stick of death thing. Actually, you want to hear funny? Ask Luke why his last girlfriend broke up with him. That’s pretty funny.”

“Han, please don’t do this,” Luke begged.

“What happened?” Felicity could help but ask.

Luke let out a heavy sigh, he knew if he didn’t tell her that Han would.

“My last girlfriend, Crystal broke up with me because…” Luke cringed, “… she couldn’t stand Threepio.”

Felicity burst out laughing, “Your girlfriend dumped you because of your droid?”

“Oh, like you’ve never had an embarrassing breakup! I bet you have a few horror stories of your own.”

“Yeah,” Felicity grinned. “But you’re never going to hear them.”

“Wanna bet?”

As Luke and Felicity settled into a comfortable routine of teasing and playful laughter, Han couldn’t help but watch them with a hint of suspicion. He had been around Luke long enough to recognize when Luke took a liking to someone, and Luke was _definitely_ starting to like Felicity.

Han used the pretense of refilling Leia’s glass to lean over and mutter to her, “I know what you’re doing.”

Leia looked confused.

“What am I doing?” Leia whispered back.

“Come on,” Han nodded to Luke and Felicity. “I’m not stupid. People don’t just randomly invite childhood friends over for dinner. You’re playing matchmaker.”

“Matchmaker?” Leia had to hold herself back from exclaiming. “No, I’m not! What? You think I invited her over for _Luke_?”

“Is the Falcon the fastest ship in the galaxy? Don’t feel bad. Your plan seems to be working.”

“Han, you’re insane.”

“Yeah, but I’m still right. Look,” Han pointed at the pair.

As Luke described some story from the days of the Rebellion, Felicity was barely touching her food. She was laughing hard to the story and lightly gripping Luke’s forearm.

Leia’s eyes narrowed.

“I don’t… I don’t think anything’s going to happen,” Leia herself didn’t sound confident in her words.

“Yeah, and you never thought anything would happen with us,” Han pointed out. “Now we’ve got a six-year-old kid who’s trying to use the Force to get into dessert. Knock it off, Ben!”

Leia frowned as she watched Luke refill Felicity’s glass for her. Leia hadn’t seen Felicity smiling that brightly in years. She had entertained the thought that Luke and Felicity could be friends but something more? Leia liked Felicity well enough but Leia wasn’t certain if she trusted Felicity enough to pursue her brother. In addition to her natural sisterly tendency to believe no one was good enough for Luke, Leia also knew a few things about Felicity that set off alarm bells.

There was just no way a romantic relationship between Felicity Rhiaon and Luke Skywalker could end in anything but disaster.

Taking a sip of her water, Leia watched Felicity and Luke over the rim of her glass. Felicity was turned away portioning more salad onto her plate, but Luke couldn’t take his eyes off Felicity as his trademark adorably goofy grin was plastered across his face.

Leia would definitely have to keep a close eye on this for sure.

* * *

If Han was convinced by dinner that Luke had finally found “the one,” walking into the cockpit of the Falcon the next day set it in stone. Luke was sitting in the co-pilot’s seat as Felicity stood behind him deep in conversation with Luke.

“It just gets everywhere,” Luke was in the middle of saying to Felicity.

“I know,” Felicity laughed. “I swear, it’s been ten years and I’m still finding it in my clothing. But you know, that’s not even the worst part about desert living-”

“I’m sorry,” Han loudly interrupted. “Are you two talking about _sand_?”

“Not sand,” Luke quickly corrected as his face reddened. “Desert living. Apparently Felicity actually lived on a desert planet called Jakku for about a month. I was just comparing it to Tatooine.”

“Jakku?” Han raised an eyebrow. “That junkyard?”

“It wasn’t exactly by choice,” Felicity answered. “Anyways, what I was saying was that sand isn’t the worst part of desert living: it’s the hunger. Water wasn’t too bad an issue on Jakku, but food portions were the literal currency.”

“That’s so odd. On Tatooine it was the opposite, enough food but no water.”

Han couldn’t believe he was actually hearing two people legitimately fascinated by a conversation comparing desert planets.

“Okay, if you two are done being… _strange_ ,” Han took a long pause as he shot a judgemental look at each of them, “there’s some kids we’re going to go rescue. Fliss, can I call you Fliss?”

“Sure,” Felicity shrugged.

“Fliss, you better go strap in in the back with the others,” Han ordered. “Luke, you’re my co-pilot. We’re going to go pick up Chewie on Kashyyyk and then head to the Meridian System. And, Fliss? Leia told me about your… luck with ships… Don’t touch anything.”

“Aye, aye, Captain. Let me know when we can move about freely. Skywalker here thinks he can beat me at dejarik,” Felicity winked at Luke and exited the cockpit.

“Hey, do you know how many times I’ve played?” Luke got out of his seat and called after her from the door. “Your credit chip is mine, Rhiaon!”

Luke grinned to himself and turned back to his seat. He was surprised to see Han staring at his with an eyebrow raised.

“What?” Luke asked.

“Nothing,” Han said. “Help me put in the coordinates.”

“Kashyyyk’s number one on the list of favorite routes, right?” Luke sat down in the co-pilot seat and started working.  

“That’s right,” Han pressed a few buttons.

The men sat in silence as they readied the ship for takeoff.

“Hey, Luke?”

“Yeah, Han?”

“Marry that girl.”

Luke just looked at Han like he was crazy.

* * *

_Coming Up Next Chapter…_

Aggressive Negotiations

When negotiating the joining of Zygerria into the New Republic, Queen Thali learns of Felicity’s friendship with Luke Skywalker. Hoping to have found a bartering chip, Felicity calls in a favor to get Luke to come with her to Zygerria. But a forgotten incident from the Clone Wars complicates things and the duo must find a way off the planet before they’re sold into slavery.

* * *

_“I should have known it was a trap the second they specifically asked for Luke Skywalker to come.”_

_“Hey, don’t look at me; this is my father’s fault. I can’t believe it, six years he’s been dead, and he’s still causing me problems.”_

_“At least for once it’s Anakin they’re angry at, and not Vader.”_


	4. Aggressive Negotiations - Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When negotiating the joining of Zygerria into the New Republic, Queen Thali learns of Felicity's friendship with Luke Skywalker. Hoping to have found a bartering chip, Felicity calls in a favor to get Luke to come with her to Zygerria. But a forgotten incident from the Clone Wars complicates things and the duo must find a way off the planet before they're sold into slavery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Honestly, I am so sorry that this chapter is so long. A lot of the scenes in this chapter are setting up Luke's living situation and current success with the Jedi Order. It's mostly setting the stage for the rest of the chapters, and unfortunately it means this chapter is quite long. I'll try to make the next one a lot shorter.

Definitions of Home

Part Four

Aggressive Negotiations

* * *

10 ABY

Felicity just barely resisted the urge to slam her head against her desk. She was having her seventeenth meeting with Thali Scintel – the Queen of Zygerria – and their constant lack of progress made Felicity feel like they were in their first.

To be fair to Felicity, they had made quite a bit of progress. They had hammered out almost all of the details that needed to be settled in order for Zygerria to join the New Republic. Usually it would take an Emissary another dozen meetings to get where Felicity had. Unfortunately, there was just one small term that had brought Felicity and Thali to an impasse.

"With all due respect, Your Majesty," Felicity's voice was professional, but her teeth were gritted, "I must reiterate that the prohibition of slavery is a non-negotiable term. The New Republic does not find any merit in the subjugation of others as property."

"I understand your view on the matter, Miss Rayon," Thali refused to look Felicity in the eyes, and kept her head held high, "It is hard for those raised outside of slave culture to understand the benefits. However, Zygerria has a long and honourable history that I must respect. We have the largest market of buyers and sellers in the Galaxy. You understand why I cannot just put an end to it."

"Your Majesty, the Republic would be honored to cover the expenses incurred by dissolving the slave market. This would be a sign to all planets that the Republic and its members believe in a society of freedom and justice."

"Not's not an issue of cost, Miss Rayon. It's a matter of principle."

Felicity sighed, "Please, Your Majesty. Let us put this issue aside for now, and proceed with the next step in this process. Let me come and visit Zygerria. I will see the issues affecting your planet, hear from your citizens their thoughts, desires, and concerns, and I will get to understand the culture of your nation. Perhaps I can come to understand your position on slavery and be more flexible on the matter."

Thali raised a brow, arrogance flooding her features.

"Oh, you will?" Thali smirked. "Does that mean you are willing to make some sort of concession to allow the continuation of slavery on Zygerria?"

Felicity's eyes darkened, "Absolutely not."

Thali smiled, having caught Felicity out.

"Then I'm afraid our negotiations must come to an end," Thali rose out of her chair. "If the New Republic forbids the practice of slavery, then Zygerria cannot join."

"But, Your Majesty-"

"I will _not_ be the Queen who killed the Zygerrian slave market!" Thali snapped as she gracefully crossed the room. Though her voice was sharp, her demeanour was unshaken. She was a Master who revelled in stepping on the backs of others to make herself feel tall.

Felicity had seen her share of planetary heads walk out of her office, refusing to join the New Republic, but she couldn't let it happened this time. Not with Zygerria.

"Please, Your Majesty!" Felicity shot out of her chair. "Give me a chance and let me make the visit."

Thali paused at the door of Felicity's office. Felicity nearly winced at the look on Thali's face. Thali was enjoying making Felicity beg.

"My Dear," Thali purred – the cat side of her taking over, "there are two kinds of people in this world: Masters and Slaves. Masters will always have something to give you in return for a favor. Slaves do nothing but take. You have nothing to offer me, and you never will. So do yourself a favor, and accept what you are: not a Master, but a Slave."

Felicity glared at Thali, "You're wrong. I have something to offer. I many not know what yet, but I'll find something you want."

Thali gave a toothy grin, "When you do find it, give me a call, Miss Rayon."

And with that, Queen Thali walked out the door.

Felicity sighed. What could she possibly find that Queen Thali wanted?

* * *

Luke Skywalker glared at the HoloMag article on his tablet as he waited in the reception area of the Senate Emissary Offices.

"Analysts project that with the upcoming BB Units, R Series Droids will become redundant and obsolete in the next ten years," Luke read out. "Have you ever heard of something so ridiculous?"

In the chair beside him, Reine Agim glanced up from her own tablet.

"Luke, how many times do I have to tell you? Stop reading Droid Mags; they only make you mad," Reine reached over and pulled the HoloMag chip out of Luke's tablet. She used the Force to float the chip back to the receptionist's desk. "Now would you do something useful and help me review the meeting notes?"

Reine was Luke's Second-in-Command in the Jedi Order. She had been his first student, approaching him a few months after the Battle of Endor with suspicions of Force Sensitivity. Reine had been very much his guinea pig while Luke not only struggled with figuring out how to teach the ways of the Force, but also in finding he still had much more to learn himself. Thankfully Reine was patient. She had learned how to keep him in line, pick up his slack, and generally stop him when he was getting delusional.

Honestly, Luke couldn't have wished for a better Second-in-Command than Reine.

Luke sighed, "Reine, I've been over the notes so many times, I literally can recite them in my sleep."

Reine shot Luke a questioning glance.

"I… May have gotten a little too relaxed mediating yesterday, and Davarl found me muttering to myself asleep on the floor."

"Our Grandmaster, Ladies and Gentlemen," Reine proclaimed to the empty waiting room.

Not even Aria the Receptionist looked up.

"Keep that up, and I'll deny your request for a padawan again," Luke joked.

"Luke, there's literally six members of the Jedi Order. Seven if you count your nephew. I'm not holding my breath for a padawan." Reine looked down at her notes, "Hey, there's an idea: if you're bored of meeting notes, why don't you brainstorm some ways to find more recruits? Obik's getting tired of me kicking his butt. I need a new challenge, and unfortunately the next best dueller is Grandmaster 'I Dueled Vader into Submission' Skywalker."

Luke shook his head, "Would you and Obik just admit you like each other, and go out already? You know there's no rule against romance in my Jedi Order."

"Oh, I could never tell with the parade of women you've marched past me over the years."

"Why does everyone think I'm some womanizer who has a different girl for every day of the week?"

"Trust me, Luke, no one thinks that. But you're _terrible_ when it comes to women."

"I'm not terrible!" Luke exclaimed.

"You go in too deep, too fast, and end up with a broken heart," Reine said.

Luke narrowed his eyes, "You've been spending time with Han and Lando again, haven't you?"

"They play a pretty mean hand of Sabacc," Reine shrugged. "Oh, that reminds me, Lando says he's found us another few artifacts. I already transferred the funds. I'll send you receipts tonight."

Over the years, Luke had struggled to find Jedi artifacts to help him rebuild the Order. It was so desperate that of the six adult Jedi in the Order, they had only three lightsabers to go around. Oddly enough, Lando had found a contact who could get their hands on Jedi artifacts every now and then. It was rather expensive, but the objects were always very valuable and useful.

Thankfully, Luke had inherited the fortune of Darth Vader – it paid to be the son of the second highest salaried man in the Empire – and had devoted most of the funds to rebuilding the Order. He had tried giving Leia half of the inheritance, but Leia refused to have anything to do with Vader. After a lot of convincing from Luke, Leia agreed to take a fifth of the fortune, and devoted her share to various charities that made up for the misdeeds of Vader.

"Did Lando tell you what he got?" Luke asked.

"Some scrolls, training equipment, and I think a few lightsaber crystals," Reine reported.

"Good. Now if only we had the rest of the materials to make lightsabers. Unfortunately, Obi-Wan only left me enough materials for our three," Luke had taken up the habit of referring to Kenobi's true name to differentiate from Ben Solo. Luke paused as he thought of Obi-Wan's hut on Tatooine and what Luke had managed to scavenge from it, "He left a lot of cloaks, too. I think he had a thing for them."

Reine shook her head, "What I'd like to know is where Calrissian finds this stuff."

Luke chuckled, "I learned a long time ago that when it comes to Lando's contacts, don't ask questions. Just give him the money."

"Your Majesty!" Aria the Receptionist suddenly called.

Reine and Luke looked up to see a Zygerrian gliding into the reception area. She glanced at the pair of Jedi, but quickly looked away. Clearly they weren't worth the time it took to examine them.

"How did it go?" Aria asked. "Can I take your comments for Felicity to look over?"

Reine stifled a laugh as Luke's eyes instantly flicked up at the name Felicity. Han had been very chatty around the Sabacc table about how well Luke and Felicity were getting along during Resistance missions.

"That will not be necessary," Thali coolly replied.

"Oh, then let's just book you in for Felicity's visit," Aria began to type. "Would three weeks from now work?"

Thali scowled, "There will be no visit. I'm afraid that Miss Rayon and I have reached a stalemate. Zygerria will be withdrawing from the process."

Luke frowned at that Thali's words, the error echoing in his mind.

"Wait! Your Majesty!" Felicity suddenly ran into the room.

Luke opened his mouth to greet her but paused when he realized she hadn't even noticed him blinded by some burning passion.

"Miss Rayon, please," Thali rolled her eyes. "It's over."

"It's _not_ over!" Felicity snapped.

"Felicity," Aria whispered. "Remember the rules. If Nils heard that you weren't being professional-"

"I don't care about Nils or professionalism at this point!" Felicity snapped. Her eyes locked on Thali, "You think I'm a Slave? I'll show you I'm a Master. I won't roll over on this! You _will_ book a planetary visit, you _will_ welcome me with open arms, and we _will_ figure this out!"

Reine leaned over to Luke, "Is that your new friend?"

Luke nodded.

"I like her."

Thali looked impressed, "You don't back down from a challenge, do you Miss Rayon?"

"Challenge?" Felicity raised a brow. "Please, I stole the plans to the First Death Star right out from under the noses of Vader and Tarkin. Getting Zygerria to join the Republic is easy."

Thali smirked, "As moving as your passion is you still have nothing to give me."

"Um? Excuse me?" Aria timidly broke in.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Uh… Sorry," Aria squeaked, "but Master Skywalker, Nils is ready to see you now."

Thali's ears flicked at the word Skywalker.

"Thanks, Aria," Luke nodded while he and Reine stood. As they headed towards the office of Nils Arlos – Head of the Senate Emissary Office – Luke grinned at Felicity, "Hey, Felicity."

"Hey, Luke," Felicity's stubborn demeanour broke for a moment, and she lightly touched his arm as he passed her. When the Jedi were gone, Felicity snapped back into battle mode, "Listen, _Thali_ -"

"Luke Skywalker?" Thali said in surprise.

"What?" Felicity blurted out, thrown off her game by the abrupt change of tone.

"Was that Jedi Grandmaster Luke Skywalker?" Thali asked.

"Uh…" Felicity glanced at Aria. "Yes?"

Aria looked just as lost as her.

"Son of Jedi Knight and Clone Wars General Anakin Skywalker?" Thali pressed.

"Yeah. Luke's a friend," Felicity scowled. "Why?"

Thali grinned, "Well, Miss Rayon, I think you just found what you can offer me."

* * *

"Luke, I cannot thank you enough for agreeing to come with me to Zygerria," Felicity repeated for the umpteenth time as Luke piloted their ship to Zygerria three weeks later. "I really owe you one."

"Don't think anything of it," Luke replied. "It's my duty as a Jedi to act as keeper of the peace."

"Yeah, well this isn't so much peacekeeping as it is desperately trying to break Zygerrian from a mindset of brutality and subjugation."

Luke looked at Felicity.

"I tend to use ostentatious language while I'm on the clock," Felicity quickly explained. "Sort of picked it up from Leia and her father when I was younger."

"Leia does have an extensive vocabulary when she's being professional… and insulting Han." Luke paused, "I'm sorry, this is probably going to be the strangest segue you've ever heard, but speaking of Han, can I ask you why Queen Thali keeps calling you Miss Rayon?"

Felicity frowned, "That is the strangest segue I've ever heard."

"Well, I thought your name was pronounced Ree-On. Or is it like Han, and everyone pronounces it differently without there be a correct way of saying it?"

Felicity smiled, "No, it's pronounced just the one way: Ree-On."

"Then why don't you correct Thali when she says Rayon?"

"It's a mind game," Felicity explained. "She knows it's pronounced Ree-On, but she's using Master/Slave mentality. Thali chooses to call me Rayon because it sends the message that I'm so beneath her that I'm not important enough for her to remember my name. If I call her out on it and correct her, she wins. We're going to get a lot of that type of thing during this visit, so be aware and don't give in."

"I'll stay on alert." Luke glanced at the navi computer, "One hour until arrival."

"Well, if we haven't killed each other in the last sixteen hours, I don't think we're about to start," Felicity spun in the co pilot seat.

She and Luke were the only people aboard the small Emissary vessel. Technically the Emissary in charge was supposed to fly, but Nils had insisted Luke pilot instead. He had informed Luke that Felicity was so terrible at landings that she had a black mark against her name and was forbidden from flying any government owned craft.

"So," Felicity said. "We got time to kill. You want to tell me what you were doing on Coruscant at the office when Thali visited? Don't you live with your sister on Hosnian Prime?"

"No," Luke quickly answered. "Well… okay, yes I live with my sister… sort of. She's got a place on Coruscant too, being the Senator and all. I sort of move around a lot, so it's never really made sense for me to get my own place."

"Hey, I'm not judging you for living with your sister. I'd love to live with my brother if he wasn't… _dead_ ," Felicity became quiet.

Luke watched her, waiting for a signal of what to do next. He could see her walls go up in the same way they had when discussing lightsabers.

Felicity cleared her throat, "Uh, Nils said your case was ongoing, and ergo confidential. I can't ask her for details, but I'm allowed to ask you."

"Oh, I'm just having some issues with the base planet of my Jedi Order," Luke explained pushing forward the change of conversation. At his response he could already see Felicity relaxing. "I've been permitted to build the temple – which should be opening next month – but I've run into some roadblocks when it came to building any residences."

"Why's that?"

"I picked a planet called Rornian that is strong with the Force, but also unclaimed, uninhabited, and undeveloped planet. There's no pre-existing authority of any kind on Rornian, no sentient species, and it's the only planet in its system. However, it is in Republic controlled space, so the Republic is in charge of the matter."

"Ouch! No pre-existing authority whatsoever?" Felicity winced, "That's a lot of paperwork."

"Nils said it would probably be minimum a year before we settled everything," Luke sighed. "You'll probably see me around your office a lot."

"You bet I will. Luke, that's only going to be a year if every person in the office stops what they're doing and devotes twelve hours a day, seven days a week to your case. And no offense, you're a nice guy, but I like my weekends off."

Luke frowned, "How long will it be then?"

Felicity thought hard, "Well, the Republic has to set up a body of Government on Rornian. In order to do that, you have to have residents, some of which can't be a part of your organization – say one person for every thirty you have – and you'll need a place for them to live. You have to buy the property for them to build on, and in order to do that, the land needs to be claimed. With your temple residing there, you have a good case for claiming it yourself, but that will need to be approved. Honestly, I'd say this is easily three to four years of paperwork."

Luke's jaw dropped, " _Four years?"_

"You might want one of your Jedi to buy a place on Coruscant. Otherwise that'll be a hell of a commute."

Luke couldn't believe it, "You know, maybe I had my information wrong. I'll talk to Nils when we get back. That can't truly be four years of work."

"Whatever you say," Felicity shook her head. "Well, I suppose since we're getting close to Zygerria, now would be a good time to go over the rules again. As I've said before you are here as an agent of the Emissary Office, _not_ as a Jedi or a private citizen. Everything you do directly reflects myself and this office. Don't screw it up, Skywalker."

"I'll try not to," Luke laughed. "You really don't have to go over the rules again. You made them pretty clear when you refused to let me bring Artoo along."

"Personal products such as droids can be used to collect confidential information, hence why they are forbidden. Just be glad I talked Nils into letting you bring your lightsaber, and trust me, I _really_ did not want to."

"Someday I'm going to convince you to tell me why you hate lightsabers so much."

"If thinking that helps you sleep at night," Felicity shrugged. She then became very serious, "Luke, this last part is the most important. While we're in Zygerria, as Senate Emissaries we will be bound by both the laws of Zygerria and the Republic. That means the Republic won't allow us to participate in slavery whatever the capacity, and Zygerria will not allow us to interfere with anyone else attempting to particiapate. I know that this is a lot to ask you, but I don't have a choice-"

"I understand, Felicity," Luke assured her. "But hopefully we can convince Zygerria to end this and save even more people. And perhaps if any runaway slaves might just _happen_ to sneak aboard this ship-"

"We'd return them immediately to Zygerria," Felicity interrupted. She shot Luke a hard look, "Luke, I know this is a horrible situation, but I need you to promise me that you will not help any slave escape this planet."

Luke took a deep breath, "I promise."

It was a promise Luke would be forced to break.

But then… so would Felicity.

* * *

"Ah, Miss Rayon!" Queen Thali greeted the duo as they were escorted into the throne room by a half dozen guards. Thali stood on the top of the steps, basked in the sunlight let in through the large open windows. "I see that you've arrived safely. Was your trip comfortable?"

"All except for the part where on our trip between the ship and the palace Master Skywalker was given no less than six offers to purchase me."

"Six?" Thali gave her a thin smile. "I would have thought with your beauty it would have been more in the twelve to fourteen range."

"Well, it's always nice to be complimented and reduced into chattel in the same sentence."

Felicity was dying on the inside. Usually she was able to maintain a sense of professionalism and respect with her cases, no matter how much she despised the planetary leaders. While she may have not been the most efficient, or had the highest success rate in her office, she had a knack for winning over the tricky cases. Nils liked to boast that Felicity probably could have talked Vader into joining the Rebellion if she had had the shot (though given her past dealings with Vader, Felicity highly doubted it.)

Yet there was something about Queen Thali that pushed Felicity's buttons. Perhaps it was the way that how Thali treated her made Felicity remember all the times someone dismissed her as nothing more than a footnote in the history of the Death Star. Perhaps it was how the Master/Slave mentality of Zygerria made Felicity recall growing up under the oppressive shadow of the Empire. Or maybe it was Felicity's desperation to get Zygerria to join, and how she couldn't allow herself to fail this time, because to Felicity, that time was about more than a new seat in the Senate.

Or maybe it was just that Thali was a schutta. That could be it.

"And you must be Master Skywalker," Thali turned her attention to Luke. "I have truly looked forward to meeting you."

Luke frowned as Thali descended the stairs of her throne. There was something strange in the way she spoke to him; something malevolent. Her grin was crooked and her eyes kept darting around the room at the many, _many_ soldiers. Far more soldiers than what would be considered excessive.

The Force rippled around Luke. There was something familiar about the palace. Something had happened there a long time ago. He could hear the hum of lightsabers, and the crackle of electricity. Luke shivered as he was reminded of Palpatine's electricity jolting through his body.

Words of the past echoed through the Force becoming whispers in Luke's ears.

" _Slavery is a natural order of things."_

" _But you Lars, you are proving quiet resourceful."_

" _You destroyed my auction and frightened my customers."_

" _I will not serve you."_

" _If they are to live as slaves, it will be you who keeps them that way."_

" _Why would you think I care about the slaver scum?"_

"Luke?" Felicity's voice brought him back into the present.

"Uh, yes?" Luke tried to pretend he had been listening. All eyes were turned on him, and the soldiers closest to him were whispering to each other. Luke's left hand discretely shifted onto the hilt of his lightsaber. "Did you say something?"

"Yes… I was introducing you to Queen Thali," Felicity frowned. There was a strange tension in Luke's voice. Luke's eyes locked on hers, and she could see a hint of worry. She was about to ask if Luke was feeling alright when he did it.

Using his right hand, Luke scratched his jaw three times.

It was the Resistance's code for danger.

"Forgive my friend, Your Majesty," Felicity kept a smile on her face as she ran over in her mind all the locations of weapons on her body. "Queen Thali, I would like to introduce you to Luke Skywalker, Grandmaster of the New Jedi Order."

"It's a pleasure," Luke bowed.

Thali smiled, "Luke Skywalker, I have looked forward to this. Before we can proceed, I must clarify one small fact. You are indeed the genetic offspring of Jedi Knight and Clone Wars General Anakin Skywalker?"

Luke withheld a reaction, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"And you have accepted the role of his heir, taking on all aspects of inheritance and his legacy?" Thali pressed.

"Of course, Your Majesty," Luke casually glanced at Felicity and rotated his shoulders counter clockwise.

Felicity placed her hands on top of her two blasters and shifted slightly so she and Luke were somewhat back to back.

"Very well," Thali grinned. "Then we shall proceed. TAKE THEM!"

"DOWN!" Luke ordered.

Pulling out her blasters, Felicity dropped to her knees just as Luke ignited his lightsaber and swung. It was a good thing they had learned on Resistance missions how to work as a time, or Luke might have taken off her head.

Felicity fired at the guards, consistently taking out two at a time. Without even blinking, Luke sliced through the lines charging towards him. They worked as a fluid team, Felicity focusing on ranged attacks while Luke dealt with the melee.

It was going rather well… until the power cell on Felicity's blaster died.

"Damn it!" Felicity swore as the blasts stopped.

She made the mistake of pausing to look at her bust weapon. Her other hand stung from the jolt of a blot hitting her blasters. Felicity swore again as she looked at her busted weapons and the soldier advancing on her.

"Oh, screw it!" Felicity threw herself against the soldier.

Surprised from the unexpected attack, the soldier went down, but he grabbed Felicity by the wrist and pulled her with him. She kicked his stomach, trying to escape, but he would not release her hand. Using the free one, Felicity did the only thing she could think of: she grabbed him by the hair and smashed her head against his.

It hurt. _A lot._ But it did the trick. The solider was dazed enough that he released her hand. Felicity grinned and grabbed the sides of his head. She lifted it and smashed it against the floor knocking him out cold.

Luke – who had watched the exchange while he fought – couldn't help but grin. He would have never thought of using a head butt to distract someone, but as Han and Leia had proved to him time and time again, sometimes the unusual was the best way to save your skin. When they got out of this mess, Luke would have to remember to tell the others about Felicity's little move.

Felicity had no time to celebrate. An arm locked around her shoulders, trying to restrain her. Felicity wrapped her own arms around the enemy limb, and shifting all of her weight into the move, flipped the soldier over and sent him flying. Felicity smirked as he hit the ground, a loud _thud_ signalling he too had been knocked out.

Then it hit her: five tongues of high voltage electricity lashing down her back.

Luke heard Felicity's piercing scream and turned to see her slumping to the floor as a Zygerrian stood behind her with an electric whip.

"NO!" Luke yelled, fighting his way towards her.

It was of no use: they had already subdued Felicity, using no less than five soldiers to hold her down. Felicity tried to struggle out of their grasp, but shrieked as she was whipped again.

Luke felt the anger boiling in his blood. It brought him back to the Second Death Star and watching his friends die in the distance. He raced towards Felicity, but was stopped dead in his tracks when another whip struck him.

He went down _hard_. Falling to his knees, Luke was paralysed by the painful electricity. Ever since Palpatine's attempt to kill him, Luke had developed a low tolerance for electricity based injuries. Once Luke had been working on some wiring in the Falcon, and Han turned on the hyper drive, mistakenly thinking Luke had finished. The resulting shock had actually put Luke in a coma for three days.

Accident or not, that incident was the angriest Leia had ever been at Han.

Luke felt the guards grabbing him, but he couldn't fight them off, still numb from the shock. One of the soldiers took his lightsaber, and they dragged Luke next to Felicity at the center of the throne room. The pair were on their knees before Queen Thali, utterly beaten and confused.

"Wh- Why?" Luke simply asked.

"Why?" Thali's eyes darkened. "Because you are Anakin Skywalker's heir."

Luke sighed, "Whatever my father did to you as Darth Vader, I assure you-"

"Oh, we have no quarrel with Vader," Thali interrupted. "It's the man who came before that made an enemy of us."

"What could he have possibly done as Skywalker that warrants _this_?" Felicity demanded. "I can understand Vader, but not Skywalker. What did he do?"

Thali looked directly at Luke, "He killed my mother."

Luke's eyes widened, "Your mother?"

"Queen Miraj. There was an incident during the Clone Wars involving Togrutas being taken as slaves. Your father came to free them with the help of his Padawan and former Mentor, a man I believe you are also familiar with, Obi-Wan Kenobi. They were discovered and enslaved. As revenge, in the process of escaping he killed my mother."

"Your Majesty, I am terribly sorry about what my father did to you. I know what it's like to lose parental figures," Luke tried to calm Thali. "But what benefit is there in punishing me for his misdeeds?"

"Our laws are clear on this matter: he took the life of my mother, so I have the right to take his life," Thali explained. "But since he is dead, the legacy passes to his heir. You openly acknowledged that you took that role. I am legally allowed to punish you in whatever way I see fit, Master Skywalker,"

"Fine," Luke conceded, instantly trying to come up with a plan for escape. "But what about Felicity? What right do you have to punish her?"

"Oh, no right at all," Thali conceded. She grinned at the smouldering Felicity, "So just annoys me, and all slaves should be put in their place."

"I'm not a slave!" Felicity snapped.

"Not yet," Thali chuckled. "Don't worry, Miss Rayon. You wanted to understand slavery? You're about to get some first hand experience. The victory of killing the two of you wouldn't be nearly as sweet as the victory of selling you."

"Selling us?" Luke blurted out. "You can't!"

"I will."

"People will look for us!" Felicity warned. "When my office doesn't hear from me-"

"Yes, I know about your forty-eight hour check in rule," Thali waved her hand carelessly. "If you don't check in with them in forty-eight hours they'll send Republic troops to Zygerria to rescue you. But here's the problem the slave auction starts in three hours. You'll be long gone before your little Republic knows anything is wrong. Guards! Take them to be processed!"

Felicity and Luke struggled as the guards started pulling them towards opposite doors, separating them. Luke tried to use the Force to attack the guards, but he was still too weak from the shock.

"Oh, and Arbis?" Thali said.

The guard holding Luke's lightsaber paused.

Thali locked eyes with Luke, "Sell that lightsaber to the collector. It'll fetch a pretty price.

"No! Stop!" Luke yelled as Arbis ran off with his lightsaber.

"Luke, do something!" Felicity cried out.

"I'm trying! Why don't you try something?"

"You're the Jedi! Do some of that weird mind magic and call your sister or students or someone for help!"

Luke could have kissed her for the suggestion. Of course, he could use the Force to call for help! Why didn't he think of that?

Taking a deep breath, Luke let the Force in. He pushed the absolute limits of his mind picturing his sister and his students, hoping one of them might be able to hear him.

" _It's Luke Skywalker. Please, help me. Felicity and I have been captured. We're about to be sold into slavery. Please, help us."_

Unfortunately for Luke, Hosnian Prime was too far away and neither Leia or his students heard his plea.

But someone else did.

* * *

"I should have known it was a trap the second they specifically asked for Luke Skywalker to come," Felicity muttered as she and Luke sat on a bench in a small hallway under the slave auction arena.

"Hey, don't look at me; this is my father's fault. I can't believe it, six years he's been dead, and he's still causing me problems," Luke shook his head.

"At least for once it's Anakin they're angry at, and not Vader."

"A small comfort."

"Oh, what? Are you uncomfortable with this situation?" Felicity snapped. "What me to fluff your pillow for you?"

"I think you're just made that when the slave inspector looked you over, she said you were damaged goods," Luke said.

"My _goods_ aren't damaged, and you'll stop trying to see if they are," Felicity tried to pull down her skirt.

Luke quickly looked away, "Sorry. Be happy you at least got a shirt."

The pair of them had been stripped, washed, looked over like a pair of cattle to assess their "value," and forced into probably the most embarrassing outfits they'd ever been forced to wear. Luke could already hear Felicity and Leia comparing notes on their slave outfits.

Both Luke and Felicity had shock collars fastened around their neck, and shackles on their wrists. The chain connected to the shackles had been secured to rings in the holding area preventing any escape.

Luke had no shirt or shoes. He was basically naked, save for a very thin piece of brown fabric that was nothing more than glorified much shorter boxers.

Felicity had more coverage, but again lacked shoes. Her clothing was the colour of lavender, and she wore a very short form fitting skirt. Felicity's top at the front was nothing more than a bra, but elaborate straps criss-crossed over her chest securing the back material was completely covered Felicity's shoulders. Looking around at the other slaves in the room, Luke was curious when he realised that no other woman had that kind of shoulder covering.

But Luke had no time to inquire about the issue, for that moment the door slammed open and a guard shouted at them that the auction was starting.

"You better pray for a miracle, Skywalker," Felicity growled. "If anyone lays a hand on me, I'm going to kill them, and then I'm going to kill you."

Luke began to pray for a miracle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Alright, I caved. This chapter was getting too long so I'll make it a two parter. I guess that means there's going to be 101 chapters.


End file.
